


I Am Here

by Comin2U



Category: Marvel (Comics), Young Avengers (Comics)
Genre: Family Fluff, Family Reunions, Gen, Let Wanda have her twins back!, Reunions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-13 08:34:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29523705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Comin2U/pseuds/Comin2U
Summary: Billy never told his parents, he never told his team, and he never told Teddy most importantly. He was a twin and he was lost.Featuring: Good Dad Magneto, no reincarnation, and a whole bunch of reunions.
Relationships: Billy Kaplan & Tommy Shepherd, Billy Kaplan & Wanda Maximoff & Tommy Shepherd, Teddy Altman/Billy Kaplan, Wanda Maximoff/Vision
Comments: 5
Kudos: 136





	I Am Here

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Another What If? Children's Crusade](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27604933) by [IloveeverythingDISNEY](https://archiveofourown.org/users/IloveeverythingDISNEY/pseuds/IloveeverythingDISNEY). 



> In which I say: Scott Lang is never killed, just seriously injured, we say no to Ironlad from the Children's Crusade, Magneto and Professor X have 2 decades of marriage under their belts, and italics mean speaking in Romanian.
> 
> I also say that when Wanda rewrote reality after House of M, she didn't wipe out Mutant kind as she did, and just disappeared, not making her a criminal and just a missing Avenger. Also, her nervous breakdown was caused by Vision being killed in a battle so she never killed him.

Billy never told his parents, he never told his team, and he never told Teddy most importantly. He was a twin and he was lost.

He’d tried to convince himself that his memories were a dream. The pain and loss that clouded the memory of his childhood wasn’t real, that anything before the age of 6 was just his mind trying to make sense of things. His adoptive mom Rebecca at least tried explaining that as the case for his memory. Then again she thought it was just memory loss and a kids imagination, not the actual truth.

His brother’s name had been Thomas… Tommy. They’d been six when they’d been separated, their father emotionless and detached, their mother desperately trying to protect them from their fate. He could remember Tommy’s screams for him. Then darkness. When he woke up, he’d been in the hospital being told they’d found him cold and abandoned in Central Park. Tommy was nowhere in sight, he’d been found alone. His hair was no longer the chestnut brown it had been once upon a time, now a dark black.

He’d begged everyone, every adult, to try and find his brother, to find Tommy, but no one could find him. He’d lash out at everyone, crying himself to sleep, begging for his brother’s hyperactivity, his father’s statistical reasoning to win an argument, his mother’s Romany lullabies. When Rebecca and Jeff adopted him, he vowed not to call them his Mama and Papa, and was only grateful that it was a jewish family that adopted him, allowing him to keep some remnant of his old family. They probably forced themself to forget how Billy had cried for his twin those first few nights.

It been so long without a sign that it all been true Billy had almost convinced himself it was his imagination, that was until his powers came in though. It was undeniable to him when he got his mother’s powerset, his blue wisps of magic moving and dancing in almost the same ways hers had. He didn’t deny it to himself anymore after that.

It been nearly 10 years since he’d seen a member of his family, one that recognized him at least. Vision, Jones, didn’t count, they weren’t his father. The buzzing in the back of his head as they walked through the high security detainment facility unnerved him. Everyone had a presence around him in his mind. Teddy was this large pulsing green-tinted ball that radiated warmth and protection. Kate was a steady purple triangle, Cassie a light red oval that shifted size as her emotions changed. Jones’s was a white square, and Eli was a blue hexagon, unmovable and present. The buzzing and faint green that brushed his mind was a familiar feeling, one Billy couldn't place.

“This is the door,” Jonas stated, his voice low enough not to travel down the hall. They’d come after a Thomas, maybe that's why Billy was so out of it. There were millions of Thomas’s probably, he’d have to get over the name at some point.

“If the guy blew up his school why didn’t he blow out of his cell?” Cassie questioned as Jonas worked on the keypad.

“Most likely power dampeners. As soon as I get this password the effects should stop,” Jonas explained as the buzzing in the back of Billy’s head grew more intense, “And he should-”

The words were cut off by the three of them being thrown back, the door exploding as Billy tried to throw up a shield over him and Cassie.

“Cassie!”

“I’m fine Jonas, Billy covered me,” she answered, moving to stand up, helping Billy to do the same. “You’re bleeding.”

Billy ran his fingers over the right side of his check before pulling his hand away to see a little blood on his palm. “I’ll be fine, eventually, don’t worry.”

“What just happened?” Cassie asked, trying to see through the smoke towards the cell door.

Out of the smoke stepped a figure, his face impossible for Billy to make out, “He set me free,” a voice answered, straight and firm. In another situation it would have reminded Billy of his mother when she was trying to protect them.

Jonas was next to Billy now, “Thomas?”

Billy could see the occupant of the cell’s face now. The white hair that parted slightly to the left of the middle of his face. That was Billy’s face under that hair, “Tommy,” he stated, “Now who the hell are you?”

Billy’s voice caught in his throat, his mouth going dry as Tommy’s eyes shifted first over Jonas, then Cassie, before finally meeting his own. Tommy’s own eyes widened at seeing him.

“Wow, you two could be twins,” Cassie whispered, not believing the sight in front of her. Billy tried not to look affected by those words. They were twins.

Tommy opened his mouth, then closed it again before noticing Billy’s different hair color “Why did you end up with the normal hair color while I got white?”

And all the worry, the anxiety, the fear, dissipated at those words. This was his brother. His twin. Tommy. And he collided with his brother hugging him tightly and not daring to let go. “You asshole I thought I lost you, I thought I imagined it all.”

“You weren’t the only one,” Tommy mumbled as he hugged Billy back.

“I have no clue what’s going on but we have to get out of here…” Cassie interrupted, as guards started to come around the corner.

The twins wouldn’t have much time to talk during their escape, Tommy angry and furious at his keepers, the other Young Avengers left to try and prevent him from doing too much damage. If Kate noticed how similar Tommy looked to Billy she said nothing. Not even when the crew sat down after the battle in their base. Cassie getting bandaged by Eli, Jonas watching over.

Tommy sat next to Billy on the couch, the silence between them somewhat comforting before Tommy finally spoke. “I looked for you, when I woke up, then later all over the internet.” He offered, his hands twitching in anxiety. It been a common thing when they were kids, Tommy’s hyperactivity over presenting when he was anxious.

“I did the same,” Billy admitted, putting his hand over Tommy’s, a sign of reassurance that Tommy didn’t need to overthink this. “I ended up in Central Park, no idea how and no brother next to me. Everyone thought I was insane.”

Tommy nodded in understanding, taking in Billy’s words. “I was found in New Jersey about an hour from the house. After I told them my address and we went back, it was destroyed, gone. No one around seemed to know the story or recognize me. Ended up with the Shepherds as my guardians. They… they weren’t the best stand-ins for Mama and Papa.”

Billy looked over at his brother. He still used a Romani accent and pronunciation for their parents.

 _“I got adopted by the Kaplans. They’re reformed jews, so I still could feel connected to Grandpa and Mama”_ Billy spoke in Romanian. It been their first language, their mother wanted them to know her native tongue. Their father hadn’t disagreed and spoke it as well when they were all home. Billy had spent years mentally speaking in Romanian to try and keep fluent and not lose it.

Tommy smiled back at him, _“The Shepherds weren’t religious, didn’t really like when they caught me praying but most of the time I got away with it.”_ Clearly, Tommy hadn’t lost it either.

They didn’t have much more time to talk before they had to go rescue Teddy. Though they didn’t let the other out of their sight for more than a millisecond during the battle, they were too afraid to lose each other again.

After everything they sat down, Tommy now stayed at the base, and talked, caught up, held one another while the other broke down. They missed their mother together, their father, their uncle, Grandpa, Granddad, and Aunt Lorna. They spoke Romanian with each other to keep fluent, became brothers again as they pulled each other back into their lives.

Billy introduced Tommy to the Kaplans, who after a few questions, welcomed Tommy into the family, allowing him to stay over, attend synagogue with them, and join them for family dinners. They weren’t his mom and dad, but they were far better than any placement the Shepherds had tried to take.

It was months later when Tommy suggested they find Grandpa and Uncle Pietro.

 _“It isn’t the wisest idea Tommy. Grandpa wouldn’t exactly be the kind to believe us on sight,”_ he pointed out. It was late Tuesday morning, Billy working the dough for a pie he was making.

 _“They’re still alive though. Do you know how happy they would be to have us in their lives again? To know we’re alive and well at minimum. Plus Grandpa isn’t exactly a villain anymore. He and Granddad run the school together. It’ll be easy to find him.”_ Tommy responded, snagging an apple from next to Billy.

Billy didn’t respond for a little. He knew Tommy would let him stir over the suggestion as he baked. It seemed to be the only thing Tommy was patient for was Billy, always being sure to slow down enough to enjoy the time with his brother. Tommy said nothing, peeling the apples while Billy worked on the dough. The two brothers silently moving around and worked with each other until they finished, putting the pie in the oven for its final bake.

 _“I miss Grandpa as well,”_ Billy admitted, his eyes not leaving the oven, “I just don’t know if…” he trailed off.

Tommy nodded in understanding. They had just gotten one another back after 10 years, to try and get their grandparents and aunt and uncle, if it didn’t work it be just them again. “Billy. We don’t have to do it if you don't want.”

“No. I want to.”

* * *

The Xavier School for Mutants had been famous in the community for a long time. At one point when his powers had shown as electric manipulation with lightning Professor X had approached the Kaplan’s about letting Billy attend. He’d refused, stating that he’d rather stay close to family. He didn’t ever state that he wanted to stay close to the location he’d appeared in, just in case Tommy ever came looking for him.

It been weird to face Professor X that day, knowing that in another situation he’d called the professor Granddad, after all it was public knowledge for nearly 2 decades that Magneto and Professor X were married. Though the man had held no sense of recognition at the sight of Billy that day. Maybe if he had Billy would have gone to the school.

It been awkward to try and get into Erik’s office. After all, they couldn’t just ask for an appointment. Anyone would think them crazy and never permit them into the school. It was easy to blend in though, keep their heads down as they walked through halls crowded with teenage mutants. It took them a moment before they found their grandpa’s office, the tall dark wood door already intimidating.

 _“Last chance to turn around,”_ Tommy muttered under his breath. Billy gulped down the fear and anxiety and knocked before he could overthink it.

“Come in,” a voice answered, the knob turning on its own and the door floating open.

Erik Lehnsherr sat in a leather chair behind a desk that could be described as presidential. There were maybe 3 picture frames on the desk, not that Billy could see the comments of the frames. A wall to the left was covered in books and artifacts while the wall opposite held multiple pictures of the man with various historic figures and national leaders. Billy couldn’t find a member of the family in a photo past Charles on the wall. He was writing something, a stack of papers next to him as he finished the last of his work.

“I know I have an open-door policy but normally I only expect to be interrupted during my office hours which ended 30 minutes ago,” the master of magnetism stated, capping his pen before looking up at the two identical boys in his office. The loss of emotion on the man’s face automatically dinged as trouble to Billy. “Who are you?”

Billy opened his mouth to answer, but Tommy was too fast. “We’re your grandsons.” The glare Billy gave him almost mimicked death itself.

Erik frowned, tension building in his face, “I don’t know what you mean young man. But my grandsons are dead. They were creations of my daughter and were killed for their souls. I don’t like being tricked or conned so I suggest you either tell me the truth or be forced to leave.”

In a sense, Billy wondered if this was his version of Anastasia. Memory, family reunion, grandparent having to be convinced. He’d grown up loving that movie after he’d lost everything, hoping one day he’d be able to have a reunion like that. That somewhere a relative of his was still alive and they could reunite.

Erik stood up to his full height in the silence, the tension in the air clear to the twins, Tommy glancing at Billy for some shred of help.

 _“We can prove it,”_ Billy stated, speaking in Romanian. He knew his Grandpa had been born and raised in Germany, but he’d learned Romanian from their grandmother when they’d lived in the Carpathian Mountains. “ _You can grab Granddad, he can read our minds if need be but ask us a question. Any only family would know and we can tell you.”_

The Romanian had clearly thrown the man off. He’d likely been expecting german if someone imitated the twins. It wasn’t highly known outside the family that they preferred to speak Romanian over german even though all members could speak both languages. He’d walked around the desk, leaving nothing but two empty chairs and some space between them.

He pondered the thought clearly before looking at them. _“Your middle names. Birth Certificate ones. Along with the lullaby, your mother sang you.”_

 _“Eric and Charles,”_ Tommy replied before Billy could, _“William Eric and Thomas Charles Maximoff-Lehnsherr, sometimes when Mama was really angry she’d add Xavier as a last name as well, said Granddad influenced us probably as much as you did.”_

Erik seemed to soften a little at the last note. While the marriage between him and Charles was known, Charles’s last name was rarely formally used with his children.

 _“And our mother sang us your mother’s lullaby. She never taught us the name because she said you never told it to her.”_ Billy added on to his brother before humming a few of the bars loud enough so the master of magnetism could hear it.

And the face of strength cracked, Erik, taking in a breath to try and stable himself. His hand reaching to lean on the desk. Tommy apparently thought that his stability was worse cause he sped over, moving to help his grandfather.

Erik’s eyes locked with Tommy's, the two orbs of green meeting his own, and he cupped his grandson’s face. _“Thomas. My grandson,_ ” he spoke his voice cracking as he spoke Romanian. He hadn’t used it vocally since Wanda’s breakdown. He and Pietro stuck to German afterward. His face then turned towards Billy, “William.”

And how could Billy resist, he stepped forward, letting his grandfather wrap both twins in his arms, all three clinging to one another for life, worried the other would disappear. They didn’t move from the tight squeeze until Erik looked up towards the door.

Charles Xavier stood in the door frame, watching the three reunite. “I’m sorry. I just...” he hesitated, an uncommon thing for the professor. “I felt the surge of emotion and I had to see if it was true,” he explained, his eyes locked on Billy and Tommy.

The light tap on Billy’s mind was all that he needed to let his mental walls down. He felt his granddad in his mind and allowed him to look through his memories as he stepped towards Xavier, Tommy staying with Erik.

“Hi Granddad,” Billy smiled. And that's all he could do before he was pulled in for another tight hug.

Charles held his grandson tightly before letting him go and looking at Tommy, who wouldn’t even let a blink pass before he too was hugging Charles. “You two have grown into fine boys,” he told them once he’d let go of Tommy. “Fine boys your mother and father would be proud of.”

Erik nodded, agreeing with Charles’s words, setting a firm and grounding hand on Tommy’s shoulder, giving it a light squeeze.

* * *

It wasn’t hard for Erik to convince the two to stay with them for a few days until the weekend. Charles and Erik had a house a little away from the mansion. They’d had it built after their marriage. It was a 5 bedroom house, One master for the two of them. One guest room for Wanda and Vision, one for Pietro, one for Lorna, and one for the twins. It been made with the idea of the family being able to be under one roof.

Erik didn’t bring up how it felt empty for the past 10 years. Sure Lorna or Pietro would come around but it was never as loud as it would have been if Wanda and Pietro were arguing over the Kitchen island, Lorna and Vision standing to the side and laughing. The twins chattering in the living room.

They asked about their lives. Tommy explaining how he’d never left Jersey, but he didn’t expand on the Shepherds much past stating they fostered him. Billy explained how he’d ended up in Central Park and been adopted by the Kaplans. When Erik asked how they found each other Billy explained the circumstances that had led to their reunion. Tommy pointing out that of course, they’d find each other in a superhero circumstance, how else would Magnus's find one another.

They’d all been sitting at the kitchen island for dinner when the front lock clicked, opening as Lorna and Pietro stumbled into the house. It’d started snowing and both were covered with snowflakes. Pietro was muttering about it being too slippery to run, Lorna laughing at her half-brother.

They froze when they entered the kitchen, the sight of Charles and Erik laughing, two male twins in their teens at the counter. Pietro didn’t process it fast enough, Lorna made sense of it faster than he did, an abnormal occurrence in the family.

“Tommy? Billy?” she wished hopefully, her coat slipping from her arms and onto the floor as she surged forward to hug her nephews.

They didn’t complain, letting their aunt hug them tight. Erik just smiled and shook his head, lifting the coat and moving it to hang in the coat closet with his abilities.

Pietro moved slowly, even for a normal person, to greet the twins. He’d looked to his father for confirmation, who nodded. Then Charles, who confirmed the question as well.

Once Lorna was done hugging them the twins looked to Pietro who looked back at them. “Where you’ve been Uncle P? Slowing down in your old age?” Tommy teased, and all Pietro could do was laugh, playfully reaching for his nephew to mess up his hair.

* * *

“Wait, you're twins. Like not Dogglegangers? Twins?” Kate asked, trying to confirm the story and make sense of it.

Tommy nodded, his leg hanging off the armrest of the couch, his head leaning back against Billy’s thigh who sat next to Teddy. “Yep!”

“And you’ve known this for 4 months probably and haven't told us?” Eli confirmed.

“Well we knew that night we broke Tommy out of the facility,” Billy confirmed, “We only told my guardians and Teddy.”

“Ya I was pretty shocked as well by that fact. What I’m confused by is how Magneto is your relative,” Teddy inserted, his arm wrapped over Billy’s shoulder.

Cassie stopped rubbing her forehead and looked towards the twins “Wait so Magneto and Professor X are your grandparents? That means that of Magneto’s-”

“Erik, he prefers Erik,” Tommy cut her off, not caring really as he took a bite of one of the cookies Cassie had made that had been sitting on the coffee table, “Good cookie.”

“Ya ok, the former villain Magneto, aka your grandfather Erik, the husband of Charles Xavier, the founder of the X-men, the master of magnetism! That Erik, is your biological grandfather?” She stammered, waving her hands in annoyance. “That means that one of his three known living children, because god, members of that family keep crawling out of the woodwork! One of his children is your parent.”

“None of Erik Lehnsherr’s children were married past Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, according to public record from around what would have been Thomas’s and Billy’s birth.” Jonas interrupted from his position at one of the barstools, his voice flat and calculating.

All heads snapped from looking at Jonas back to the twins, Tommy impassive to the conclusion that the team had made, Billy smiling shyly, rubbing the back of his neck in awkwardness.

“No. No fucking way.” Eli protested, standing up and moving to walk away, “I could barely make sense of Magneto. Now we’re bringing the Scarlet Witch, the Avenger that like went insane, into this!? I'm done. I’m done!”

“Wait,” Kate interrupted Eli’s protests as he continued to ramble that it was impossible, “We’re missing the biggest piece of info that Jonas conveniently left out. Wasn’t the Scarlet Witch married to Vision? Like old Vision, not our Jonas vision.”

The room froze for another few seconds as all eyes turned back to Jonas who looked unphased then back to Tommy.

“Nope. I’m done with this bullshit,” Eli cursed, walked out of the room, his cursing continuing as he did.

“Welp now that doesn’t make this more awkward,” Tommy chuckled, “Can I have another cookie?

* * *

“Come on Uncle P, don’t you want to see if your speed is still the same in your old age?” Tommy teased. It was an unusually warm day and the Xavier-Lehnsherr family had gathered back at the house to have their weekly Monday dinner together.

Erik was working on dinner, Lorna helping where she could but mostly just watching her nephew and brother banter. Charles had still yet to return from the mansion, having a class he taught until 5, meaning he’d return soon. Billy sat on one of the barstools that lined the kitchen island, his computer opened in front of him and some college pamphlets next to him.

“You little pest,” Pietro sneered back at Tommy, reaching to mess with his hair as the younger speedster ducked, “I could beat you in a race any day, but I'm a good enough Uncle not to crush your soul like that!”

 _“Pietro, please don’t kill your nephew in the kitchen.”_ Erik stated as he put the meal into the oven to bake, whipping his hands on one of the kitchen towels before loving to look over Billy’s shoulder, “ _You realize your Granddad or I could make a call to get you into any one of these schools?”_ he asked, picking up the Harvard pamphlet and looking at it.

 _“Thank you Grandpapa, but I don’t even know if I’ll get in, and I’d prefer to do it on my own merit. Plus I don’t even know where I’d go from my choices. My application is due in a month and I don’t even know if Harvard is somewhere I want to go.”_ Billy admitted, _“My adoptive parents both attended Ivy Leagues for parts of their educations so I’d have a slight leg up as a legacy underneath them.”_

“Legacy shouldn’t be a determinator Billy,” Lorna pointed out, “Plus you should stay in New York, like Pietro or I would let you leave the state.”

Pietro nodded from his position at the edge of the kitchen, Tommy trapped by his arm around his head, “Lorna is right. I’d run you back from whatever state you chose and force you to stay close.

Billy laughed at his uncle as Tommy struggled to get out from underneath Pietro.

“And that’s why I really hope to get into Columbia and NYU,” Billy pointed out, handing a pamphlet for each school to his grandfather to look over.

“While I would appreciate the idea of keeping you in quick distance, even with teleportation, I know Charles would be slightly disappointed if you did not consider his alma mater,” Erik stated, flipping over the pamphlets to look at the school’s offerings.

“Well I’m going to NYU no matter where you choose to go! Gonna study social work!” Tommy interrupted. He’d just completed his GED with the help of Charles and Erik. It taken a little but he’d finally decided he wanted to become a social worker and help mutants in the system who didn’t have advocates.

Pietro scoffed, “Who needs college! I didn’t go and I turned out just fine,” he proudly proclaimed, leaving an open spot for Tommy to escape and run over to stand next to his brother laughing in victory and Pietro stumbled to not land on his face.

 _“That's not the best of arguments…”_ Lorna chuckled.

* * *

“Hey Billy?”

“Ya Tommy?”

“Do you ever miss Papa? I guess it's nice to have Jonas around but sometimes he reminds me too much of Papa. It makes me want to run out of a room any time it happens.”

“I know what you mean,” Billy sighed, looking at the ceiling. The two were both staying at the Young Avengers base. Most of the other members were out, but in the middle of a conversation Jonas had walked through the room, their nose in a book as they floated through furniture and a wall as they passed through. It had unnerved Billy. “After he lost his emotions he wasn’t the same though. Jonas reminds me of Papa before that. Today though seemed more like after Papa though”

“When I run sometimes I remember him.”

“Really?”

“Ya, the wind in my hair, it feels how it would when he flew and had one of us on his shoulders. Everything feels so light and limitless.”

“I remember that. I hated it and preferred to stay on the ground with Mama.”

“Gave me all the time in the air with dad. Should have known then I’d end up with the hyperactive mutation and you with one like Mama’s.”

Billy stayed silent for a minute, before moving his eyes to look over at his brother “I miss them too Tommy.”

“Do you ever think they’ll come back? Or they’re alive somewhere? Like Hawkeye is alive, Mama supposedly killed him, but he's alive. Papa came back after he was killed. He didn’t have emotions but he was around, he still tried to connect even if he couldn’t.”

“I hope Tommy. I really hope one day we can get one or both of them back.”

* * *

Billy was on the verge of a panic attack. He hadn’t meant to lose control, he hadn’t lost control, he could not lose control.

They were being attacked. Teddy was being attacked, Tommy was being attacked and running out of energy to keep going. Kate was running out of arrows. Cassie was wounded and Jonas was down. Eli was trying to cover them both from the attacks at them. And all Billy could do was try to change it.

_He didn’t want this. Hedidntwantthis. He wanted to save them. Hewantedtosavethem. Protect them. Iwanttoprotectthem. Iwanttoprotectthem. Iwanttoprotectthem._

The power surge that came with his wish rushed through him. And for what was a brief few moments Billy was able to take their opponents down. Then he couldn’t shut it down. His body was rushing with electricity and he hadn’t felt like this since the night he and Tommy had been separated. He couldn’t shut down his powers. And for a minute all he could see was his mother, her body overloaded with power as she tore apart the Avengers, a ring of light shining on the destruction beneath her.

He could hear Tommy yelling at him, and Teddy too. But he couldn’t listen to their words. Every one of his senses was overwhelmed. He could see reality stretching before him, an infinite plane with multiple branches based on choices he could make. Choices everyone in the world would make.

He could see a girl in Harlem standing outside a barbershop, knowing that based on the haircut her mother got she’d be inspired to become a stylist. He could see a lawyer, nervously waiting by his phone, knowing that based on how he answered his call he’d have the chance for a promotion. He could see a grandmother on the Subway, who was thanking a kind teenager for giving her his bus seat, preventing her from falling when the train started moving. He could see. He could see….

He saw his mother, his mama. Walking down the street a few blocks away, outside the radius of all the noise the battle had caused, oblivious to all of it, walking like she was a normal person on a normal day just walking. Her brown hair curling the way it always did. Probability and reality rolling off her, unaffected by her decisions. Her back was to him, a red empty reusable bag next to her. And she stopped, in the middle of a New York street, her breath hinged and she turned to look at him.

She looked at him. Right at him, not through him, at him. And her eyes fixated on him though he’d never left his body. She opened her mouth to say something, her hand moving to cover it as a gasp escaped her, tears building in her eyes. Her breath was shaky.

“William?”

A tear rolled down her cheek as everything seemed to click into place for her. And she seemed to glow red, the red that her hexes were always colored as. A color that was one of Billy’s favorites.

And he was flung back, no longer able to see her, the grandmother, the lawyer, the little girl. Reality pulled back in, and the electricity held him in place.

He could hear his teammates yelling now again, they were shouting his name, trying to get close. Tommy trying to vibrate through the barrier that his magic had made. His brother shouting his name. Teddy was screaming his name, pounding against the barrier.

“Billy!” Teddy shouted, “Let it go!” he screamed.

Tommy vibrated so fast Billy couldn’t see what words his mouth was making. Probability told him it was his name. Maybe even William.

His entire body spasmed and he curved in on himself. His muscles contracted in pain as the magic fought to change everything, to destroy, to create. It wanted out but if he let it go he’d never know if that was actually his mother. If it would kill his team. If it would kill him. He couldn’t let it go without something being damaged. He could hold it in him though, for a few moments, or minutes, or however, it took to gain control.

Then the red light that appeared at the end of his sight down the street caught his attention. And he fixated on it, the floating red cape. He didn’t uncurl out of his position though, he couldn’t. But he fixated on it as it came closer.

“William.”

His mother. She walked on air, her eyes on him. Her voice, one he could barely remember yet never forget saying his name. Her cape billowed behind her as she walked through the barrier. He couldn’t hear Teddy and Tommy anymore. He wasn’t sure if it really was his mother, or if this was his breakdown. If he was doomed like his mother.

“Mama,” he pleaded, tears streaming down his face, “I can’t control it. I can’t contain it. _I can't contain it._ ”

She tilted her head so that their faces were aligned and cupped his cheek. Her hand felt real. He could smell the same rose shampoo she’d used when he was a child. Her face soft. “You can, William. Don’t doubt yourself.” She spoke, her voice sweet and smooth and stern all in the same sentence, “You can control this William.”

And she took his hands in her own, giving them a light squeeze before using her own magic, wrapping it around Billy. It felt like home. It was home. And he could feel the control, his muscles releasing the tension as he unfolded himself. He stood straight, his hand in hers still as she helped him let it dissipate. Probability and reality shifted away, and his senses returned to normal, as the blue magic around them turned to her red.

“You found me, William,” she whispered, the pride in her voice evident as she put her forehead to his, " _I'm so sorry. I am so sorry for leaving you._ "

" _There's nothing to forgive."_

They floated to the ground, Wanda wrapping her arms around her son before they both sank to the floor, Billy hugging his mother tightly, their magic dissipating, the barrier coming down.

Teddy and Tommy moved to grab and see if Billy was ok but froze as soon as they saw the red-caped woman and Billy tightly wrapped in a hug.

Tommy processed first, taking a step forward, “Billy?”

Billy looked up at his brother, “I don’t know what I did. I… I just couldn’t let it go. She, she came and helped me,” he stammered, trying to look for an answer. Tommy’s gaze was locked on their mother who was staring back at Tommy.

She stood up slowly, Billy doing the same but refusing to let go of her hand. “Thomas,” she gasped, her breath almost catching as she said his name. She looked to Billy then back towards Tommy, the tears in her eyes welling as she opened her arms.

Tommy stepped closer before crashing to hug his mother. Wanda wrapped her arms around him, kissing his forehead before pulling Billy back into the hug. The three of them tightly holding on to one another.

“ _I am so proud of you both_ ,” she whispered to them, her head in between them, one head on each shoulder, _“You found me. You found each other.”_

* * *

“Mama!”

“ _No. You two stay out here. I’ll deal with this,_ ” she stated firmly. It was hard to let go, Billy holding onto one of Wanda’s hands and Tommy the other. They didn’t want to let their mother go, feeling much like the little kids they’d been when they’d been ripped away from her. But she wouldn’t let them come into the room with her as she spoke with the Avengers about what had transpired.

The Young Avengers weren’t allowed to join in the room and were being forced to wait outside the room.

“ _We want to be in there with you! This is my fault! I should have a voice,_ ” Billy refuted desperately wanting to be with her.

Wanda’s eyes flared with fury for a moment, _“None of this is your fault, and don’t ever think that it is. You brought me back Billy, anything else was out of your hands. Knowing your grandfather and granddad they should be here shortly. You’ll have to be out here to explain what happened to them.”_ She gave them both a quick kiss on their foreheads before she turned around, following Captain America into the conference room, the door closing behind them.

The group of teens looked at one another before Teddy put a hand on Billy’s shoulder and helped lead him to the living room where the group collapsed onto the couches. Cassie was in the medbay getting stitched up, Jonas was with her, having to be fixed and patched up as well.

Kate sprawled herself out on one of the fancy loveseats that were in the living room, Eli taking one of the recliners. Teddy took the corner of one of the couches, letting Billy sit next to him and curl up next to him.

Tommy took the other corner of the couch, his leg bouncing in irritation and impatience. “I hate this,” he muttered in Romanian.

Kate glared at Tommy then looked to Billy for help. She’d established that while the two were fine to speak Romanian with one another she didn’t appreciate it when it was a conversation with the entire team around. Billy just shook his head and curled further into Teddy’s side.

They sat in silence for maybe 20 minutes, Billy’s eyes closing in exhaustion as he started to fall asleep before the front doors were heard being slammed open, all of them jumping up from the suddenness of it. Tommy got up first, running towards the door that led to the foyer in the front of the mansion. The rest of the group quickly followed.

Erik Lehnsherr was storming through the foyer towards the conference room, his cape billowing behind him, every bit of present that a supervillain would carry, even if he was a former villain. Charles Xavier walked behind his husband, his hands clasped behind him as he followed, an unimpressed look on his face.

“Where is my daughter!?” He thundered, the metal in the mansion shaking as his anger surged.

“ _Grandpapa!_ ” Tommy yelled, running over to his grandfathers, Billy on his heels.

“William, Thomas, thank goodness,” Charles sighed in relief as he hugged Billy quickly as Tommy hugged Erik before the twins switched grandparents, “We came as soon as we could. Hank had to call Logan since I had my phone off during lecture,” he explained.

“We barely caught glimpses of the news, what happened Billy?” Erik questioned as he hugged his grandson, keeping a hand on Billy’s shoulder after he let go.

Billy looked to Tommy quickly, “We were under fire from AIM and overpowered. Cassie and Jonas were already injured, and everyone was running out of energy. We couldn’t win it. I…,” he hesitated unsure how to continue. His grandfather’s gentle hold on his shoulder helped ground him though, “I wanted to protect the team. I kept repeating it in Romanian in my head. Then I had the ability to. I knocked the AIM henchmen out but then it overtook me. I... I couldn’t move.”

“I felt stuck but I could see all of reality in front of me, every probability possible in the city. Then I saw mom..” before he could finish the door to the conference room opened causing all heads to snap towards the door.

Captain America led Wanda out, a silent nod to her before he left the family in the foyer.

Wanda looked at her sons with her father and Charles and moved over to them. “Father, Charles.” she greeted with a small smile on her face.

“Wanda,” Erik let out a breath of relief letting go of Billy’s shoulder to move forward and hug his daughter, _“I am glad to see you back and healthy.”_

Wanda smiled against her father’s shoulder at his words, “I missed you to Father,” she whispered back before she pulled away to look at her sons. “Everything has been sorted out,” she smiled, “And we are free to go home.” She revealed a key in her hand, one that gave access to her brownstone on the Upper West Side that had been a gift from Charles after she and Vision got married.

And the smile that came to the twin’s faces were bright enough to light up an entire house.  
_____________

_“How long have they been waiting to do this?”_

_“Since about 5 minutes after we found out they were alive. The first thing Tommy did was poke at Pietro's speed so it was doomed to happen._ ” Lorna responded, her eyes watching as Billy drew the line in the dirt with a stick.

Wanda looked at her sister before looking back to Pietro and Tommy who were gearing up to start, _“I’m honestly surprised that Pietro was about to last this long without an actual race.”_

“Alright you two know the rules,” Erik proclaimed, “First to the tip of Maine and back wins the title of the fastest speedster.”

“And no cheating or funny business!” Wanda interrupted her glare set on her son and brother.

The two speedsters nodded as they got in starting position, Tommy pulling down his goggles in prep.

_“On your marks!”_

“You’re going down Uncle Pete!”

_“Get set.”_

“We’ll see Demonspawn, we’ll see.”

_“GO!_

* * *

  
“Thomas Charles Maximoff Xavier-Lehnsherr!” Wanda yelled up the stairs, “ _What have I told you about using your superspeed in your normal shoes?!”_

“Sorry, Mama! I missed the bus so I had to run to not be late to meet with Kate!” Tommy yelled back down but made no attempt to come down.

Wanda shook her head as she moved to the kitchen moving to throw the now damaged shoes away, _“I swear that boy is worse than Pietro when it comes to his superspeed,”_ she muttered, pausing quickly to kiss Billy on the top of his head as he worked on a paper for a summer course he was taking.

“ _At this point just hex it to not wear out,_ ” Billy suggested as he closed his laptop slightly to look at his mother.

 _“You think I haven’t tried that by now? I already do it, it only lasts the shoes an extra week at most. With Pietro, I would get a month out of it at least. I don't know if your brother is running more or just purposefully causing more friction when he runs,”_ She rambled, moving back to look over the budget sheet she’d been working on before Tommy had run in.

Billy laughed at his mother.

Billy and Tommy had been living with Wanda for the past 5 months now, having moved into the brownstone with her in February. Tommy had been easily convinced to move in, mostly having been traveling between their grandparents and the Young Avenger’s base. Wanda putting up living at the Brownstone left Tommy with no hesitation to say yes. It took a little bit of convincing of the Kaplans to let Billy move in with Wanda. But after discussion and knowing that Billy needed to be more magically trained it had left them with little room for no.

Living together as a family again had been amazing. It had been almost like his childhood minus his father.

Wanda wasn’t much of an active avenger anymore, but with nearly 7 years of not pulling from her bank accounts, and the Avenger’s reserve money still being put into said accounts she had a nice nest to rebuild her life on. And it was clearly known that if she ever needed help Erik or Charles would be more than happy to help where needed, both having diverse portfolios that allowed them to make a profit to both run the school and build the twin’s college funds if it was ever needed.

After his mother’s return, Billy refused the thought of leaving New York, taking an offer from Columbia, allowing him and Tommy to both live at the brownstone with their mother while attending college.

The brownstone never felt empty, even if only Billy was home. His mother’s energy and magic lingered in every room, and half the time evidence of either Tommy or Pietro raiding the fridge was evident. Usually by both of them standing at the counter trying to compete and see who could build the biggest sandwich and fit it in their mouth.

Sometimes Erik would drop by, a bag of groceries in his arms and he would make dinner, knowing that Wanda would be out with Dr. Strange for the night to solve some magical problem.

Other times it be Lorna who dropped by with Havok in tow and played a video game with Tommy or just talked with Billy. She would sometimes bring gifts from her adventures and missions, a bobblehead from England, a new scarf for Wanda from Italy, a first edition copy of a book, and various other items.

“ _Maybe we just need to find a better enchantment to put on the shoes then_ ,” Billy suggested, watching his mother shake her head as she sat down.

“ _I wouldn’t argue with you if you were able to find one I hadn’t tried already.”_

Billy nodded and smiled and moved to say something before the doorbell rang. Wanda sighed and moved to stand up before Billy waved her off, clearly indicating that he’d get it.

No member of the family ever rang the doorbell. Lorna used her key, Pietro the backdoor, Erik would knock but never ring before using his powers to unlock the door, and Charles usually did the same, only opening it with his key though. A ring meant a delivery or a salesperson, or maybe even a neighbor wanting help with something.

The shadow of the person he could see through that door wasn’t noticeably familiar, the trenchcoat the man clearly wore obscuring anything remotely familiar that he could see. His head was tilted down, the hat he wore covering his face.

All instincts pointed to Billy having to be ready for a fight. He had back up if need be, Tommy being upstairs and his mother just down the hall in the kitchen. If he couldn’t take whoever it was in the trenchcoat he’d have help within the blink of an eye.

As the man moved to ring the doorbell again Billy opened the door, “Hey how can I help?” he asked, keeping one hand on the doorknob, magic dancing at the tips of his fingers in case he needed to react.

Tommy had once explained what time felt like when his mind sped up, everything around him moving slower even when he wasn’t using superspeed. He could see a bee’s wing flap, the moment an eye started to blink. He could take in every angle of the room, every object, placement, and color. He’d joked that he could be a modern-day Sherlock with his superspeed if he actually tried to apply it that way. Tommy could absorb information in blinks of an eye if he tried.

This felt like that to Billy, the slowness of the world around him as the man looked up at Billy. His red and green skin, the yellow stone in the center of his forehead. Everything froze as the man locked eyes with Billy, his own widening in shock, clearly, he hadn’t expected Billy to be the one to open the door.

When Tommy had asked him if their parents would ever come back he’d known that the probability they’d ever get one parent back was low. The chance had dropped the minute they’d reunited with their grandpa and the family. The likelihood that they’d get a parent back after that hadn’t been high, both magically or scientifically. Getting their mother back still seemed like a fluke to him, a magical and wonderful one, but that meant the likelihood that their father would come back plummeted. Getting both parents back was basically impossible.

They’d gotten their father back before. First after being rebuilt, no emotion and all white. That was their father, but it wasn’t their dad. Wanda had explained after they disappeared their father had gotten his emotion back for a while, the two emotionally destroyed together before they were stolen from her memory and they divorced. Billy had been around the second time when Jonas was built. It wasn’t their father again, just a piece of the man.

This, this seemed impossible though, the Vision updated and standing on their doorstep, colorful, emotionful. This was the closest version of his father Billy had seen since he’d been killed before their disappearance...

“Oh, I’m sorry,” his father stammered. “It appears that I have the wrong house. My apologies.” His head shifted, looking back over at the house number as if to double-check that he’d walked up to the wrong door.

“ _Billy honey! Who is it at the door?_ ” His mother’s voice drifted from down the hall, the Romanian clearly grabbing Vision’s attention, his eyesight shifting from looking past into the house over to Billy. The confusion in his eyes were evident.

Billy stepped out causing Vision to take a step back to give him room, _“Just a neighbor looking for some help Mama! I’m going to help them!”_ he called back into the house, moving to close the door.

“ _Alright! No magic if not necessary William!_ ”

“Yes Mama!” he confirmed before closing the door and looking back at Vision, who couldn’t stop staring at him.

“You lied to your mother,” was the first thing the android was capable of saying.

Billy looked at his father moving to lean on the handrail of the staircase, “I couldn’t exactly tell her that the Vision was standing on the front step. She doesn’t deserve this so it's better to let her think it's a neighbor before any damage could be done.”

Vision didn’t seem to be too phased by Billy’s words, instead still mainly off put by the situation itself, “I’m sorry, I’m a bit confused. I was informed this was still the Maximoff residence.”

“No you’re right, this is the Maximoff residence,” Billy confirmed, “The question here is which version of Vision are you? She doesn’t deserve a knockoff or an emotionless Vision, and I’m sure as not letting you get near her if you aren’t her version.”

Vision paused at this looking at Billy, he studied the boy for a few seconds before his eyes widened in shock, “William, your mother called you William and you spoke in Romanian.”

“Yes, I would expect an android who’s been around Romanian to recognize it, I’m named for-”

“William Shakespeare, All the world’s a stage and all the men and women merely players,” Vision interrupted, his eyes unmoving as he spoke, fixated on Billy.

“I prefer going by Billy now, but ya, Dad was a big Shakespeare fan,” he commented, his eyes watching Vision, looking for a reaction, “Weren’t you?”

The question caused the tension Vision had been carrying to release, maybe if he had lungs he would have finally taken a breath of air after holding it for a little.

“I… I don’t know what to say,” the android admitted.

“Do you want to come in and see Mom and Tommy?” Billy offered, moving towards the front door.

“Your brother is here too?”

Billy nodded, “Ya, we’ve all been living here for the last 5 months.” He opened the door and motioned for Vision to follow him.

“ _Mama! You’ll never guess who I found!_ ”  
__________

Billy had never told anyone growing up that he had a twin, one he’d lost and then found again.

He’d long since had confirmation that those memories he’d been cornered into calling dreams had actually happened. They were all real, the good and the bad. From watching his brother on his father’s shoulders flying above him and his mother to the pain as his soul was being ripped out of him for Mephisto.

He’d lost everything as a child, his father, his mother, his brother, his grandpa, and granddad, and his aunt and uncle. He’d been lucky enough to find them all again, one by one, piece by piece, his family rebuilding over time.

His family grew.

He didn’t feel so alone anymore. His brother next to him. His mother’s magic always checking in to make sure he was alright. His father poking his head through the wall when he thought the twins were asleep to make sure they were both still there. His grandpa’s constant presence and support. His grandad’s mental check-ins to make sure he was mentally alright. His uncle’s small pokes at his quicks that he’d picked up from his father. His aunt’s small tokens of appreciation she brought for them.

And it kept growing.

Teddy’s soft squeeze on his shoulder for support. Cassie’s baking and infectious attitude of optimism. Kate’s endless sass. Eli’s constant annoyance. Jonas’s statistical review of all situations. And when the Young Avenger’s grew there was America, young Loki, and David.

He could hear his mother’s laugh of glee when Tommy came home with David, announcing they were dating.

And growing.

When Viv Vision, an AIM attempt of building their own version of Vision, was brought home by their father Wanda greeted the girl and introduced her to her brothers. Billy gave her a polite smile and welcome, Tommy a small salute before digging into the sandwich he’d built. They would spend the next several nights up late, teaching Viv the pronunciation of Romanian words so she could speak the language, marking her as an official member of the Maximoff clan. They’d continue this into the night till their father would pop through the floor reminding them that Billy and Tommy still needed sleep even if Viv didn’t.

And growing.

He didn’t feel so lost anymore. He felt at home, safe. And for once, he didn’t feel the need to wait for anyone else to show up, because he knew they eventually would, even if he didn’t go looking for them. And he could live with that.

He could live with that, curled into Teddy’s side lightly snoring, knowing that he’d probably be woken up by one of his family popping in unannounced. After all, it was a hazard of being a Maximoff, of having a family.

**Author's Note:**

> So like this is the first fanfic I've posted in a while. Never felt good enough for AO3 but hey, it's a one-shot, and goddamn it, I needed a found family troupe. IDK if I'll ever do anything else with this so enjoy!


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